Sea Scout Leadership Positions
Since Sea Scouting is an older Scout program it is similar to Venturing, in that it asks for increasingly more responsibility given to the youth. People familiar with the traditional Scouts BSA program will see many similarities, but also notice that things like budgeting and financial management are primarily handled by the youth. As in all Boy Scouts of America programs the adult Scouters are ultimately their to ensure the physical and mental health of the Scouts, as well as long term organizational health. However, it is best when the adults play the role of coaches and mentors and allow the youth to do as much of the planning, organizing, and leading as possible. Below you will see a typical organizational chart, but individual units may make some changes based on the size of the Ship or their needs.
Youth Leadership Positions
The Boatswain is the highest ranking youth leader in the Ship. They are the equivalent to a Venturing President or a Scouts BSA Senior Patrol Leader. They are in charge of planning, organizing, and leading the Ship’s program.
The Boatswain’s Mate is the assistant to the Boatswain. They support everything that the Boatswain does and fills in for the Boatswain in their absence. Depending on the size of your Ship it may be helpful to have two Boatswain’s Mates; one that oversees the groups Program (events and activity planning), and one that oversees Administrative duties (Yeoman, Purser, Storekeeper).
The Yeoman is the Ship’s Secretary. It is their job to keep the attendance, records and meeting notes for the Ship.
The Purser is the youth Treasurer. Being that this is an older Scout program the Scout’s should have high levels of responsibility including over the financial issues for the Ship. This is of course overseen by an adult leader, but funds should be primarily organized and overseen by the Purser.
The Storekeeper is similar to a Quartermaster in Scouts BSA and Venturing. They are in charge of the Ship’s gear. They should know what gear is owned by the ship and keep track of the condition of the equipment so that it can be fixed or replaced as needed.
The Chaplain Aide is responsible for matters of faith. They can coordinate religious services, graces at meals, and any other spiritual needs. They should remember that most Ship’s will have a mix of faith’s so it is important to plan non-denominational services when appropriate.
The Media Specialist is exactly what it sounds like. This person may be in charge of a Ship website or Social Media accounts. If the Ship does something especially noteworthy this is the person who should coordinate with local media to help it be seen by the public.
The Specialist can be a youth officer with any specialized duty that is required for Ship operations not covered by another position. These can be assigned individually by each Ship.
Larger Ships may make use of Crew or smaller groups of Scouts, similar to Patrols in Scouts BSA, where they report to a Crew Leader and then the Crew leader reports to the Boatswain.
These individuals assist the Crew Leader in the areas that are needed, they also function as the Crew Leader if the actual Crew Leader is absent.
Adult Leadership Positions
As in other programs in the Boy Scouts of America the Committee Chair is ultimately responsible for the activities of the unit.
The Skipper is the face of adult leadership for the Ship. This position is the same as a Cubmaster, Scoutmaster, Advisor. They work directly with the other adults as well as the youth, especially youth officers, for a smoothly running efficient Ship.
Mates are the assistants to the Skipper. Depending on the size and organization of a ship they may be a general assistant and back up to the Skipper, or there may be multiple Mates assigned to specific areas such as administrative tasks or program tasks.
This group of adults oversees and is the steering committee for the Ship to make sure it is run appropriately and safely for the youth.They may have a specific Treasurer, Trainer, Secretary, and other positions or may be organized in a different way depending on the needs of the Ship.
The Chartered Organization Representative is the liaison between the Ship and the Chartered Organization. This is ideally someone who is active in both the Chartered Organization as well as in the Ship.